Red's Ace in the Hole
by SensationalShay
Summary: Red knows a war is coming.


A/N: A little something I thought up after I watched The Judge episode for the 3rd time LOL

As always, all mistakes are mine and mine alone.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Wish I did but I don't.

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Red uses his all to frequently used breaking and entering skills to let Dembe and himself into Lizzie's house. As he steps inside and shuts the door, Red looks around. The house is dark except for a few plug in nightlights Lizzie has placed around the downstairs area.

Red notices the ADT alarm panel attached to the wall next to the light switch plate in the entry way. The "Ready To Arm" blinking in green. Red shook his head. He remembers seeing that the very first time he ever broke into Lizzie and Tom's house all those many months ago. What good is it to have a security alarm if you're not going to turn it on at night?

Red listened out for the dog, Hudson, but he heard nothing moving around in the top part of the house. As Red started making his way up the stairs, Dembe moved silently into the dark living room to keep a watch out as he always did.

Red quietly made his way down the hallway before finally coming to Lizzie's bedroom. Red walked in the room and saw Lizzie sound asleep in the middle of the bed, the moon giving off the only light. Red noticed Hudson laying on top of the blanket at Lizzie's feet. Red stood over Lizzie for a brief moment before taking his usual seat in the single decorative accent chair Lizzie had placed along side a little mirrored side table in front of the bedroom windows. Red had lost count of how many times he sat in that very spot, sipping a glass of wine and watching Lizzie sleep. And Tom too of course.

It still amazed Red that for such an accomplished, ruthless killer, Tom Keen would never move when someone stood over him watching him sleep in his very own home. The number of times Red could have slit his throat without him ever opening his eyes was just astounding.

Red often came here to watch Lizzie sleep. The first time he had done it was simply to gather information about Elizabeth. Look around her home, learn about who Elizabeth was, things and colors she liked to surround herself with. What made her comfortable and happy in her private life.

That was the first time. However, since then Red always found himself coming back here in the middle of the night. He found watching her sleep relaxed him. Sleeping Lizzie was so different from Awake Lizzie. When Lizzie slept she looked calm. No frowns appeared on her face, no stress or tension tightened her neck and shoulders. When she was in a deep asleep, Lizzie looked so….peaceful. He also learned very early on that Lizzie was a bed hog. She would start out on her side of the bed but as the night went on she would finally make her way to the middle of the bed and sometimes over onto Tom's side. Many a night, Red had to keep himself from laughing out loud at seeing Tom laying on the very edge of the bed as Lizzie was sound asleep in the middle with her arms and legs spread wide open. Why on Earth they didn't trade in their queen size for a king still baffled him.

After a few times, Red learned that Lizzie slept better then she was warm. He had lost count at how many times he had come into this very room to see Lizzie bundled up in the sheet, blanket and comforter while Tom was on his side shivering in his sleep.

Lizzie may not know it but every night since the day they moved in together she has made Tom's life a living hell. Red knows for fact that since then the only time Tom ever gets a truly good nights sleep is when he goes out of town for his "teacher's conferences".

Tom Keen and his teacher conferences. Red sighed at the thought of it. He wasn't kidding when he told Cooper that a war is coming. Lizzie is about to find out just who Tom Keen really is and there is nothing he can do to stop it. Not that he would if he could Red thought to himself. She needs to know but he does hate the fact that she's going to be in pain. He has often wondered while sitting in this very chair, what Lizzie had ever saw in Tom. What did he say exactly, what did he do that made her fall in love with him. Move in with him. Marry him.

By reading all of Elizabeth's files, from elementary through college. All the work she did when she was the head of the mobile physic unit and finally being hired by the FBI at her age. Raymond Reddington knows everything there is to know about Elizabeth Keen. From birth to now. However, the one single thing he does not know is what Lizzie ever saw in Tom Keen. Was she so desperate to be "normal", to have a family, to be a wife that she just turned a blind eye to things she would have noticed about anyone else's husband? Was she so traumatized by her own childhood, at having pretty much raised herself that she wanted someone who would finally take care of her in many ways? She had met Tom right after Sam kicked the cancer the first time around. Did the thought of her being all alone in the world scare her enough that she just wanted to have somebody?

That is the question Red would love the answer to. How someone of Lizzie's intelligence and intuition could not see Tom for what he really is.

Red spent many a night thinking about the day Lizzie would finally learn about Tom. Many nights thinking about the day that Tom would slip up.

Thinking about Tom made Red think about where Tom was and who he was with that very night. Jolean Parker. Lucy Brooks. He did not expect for her to so brazening align herself with Tom. Out in the open. Introduce herself to Lizzie face to face in her own home.

Either they are under estimating Lizzie's intelligence or they don't believe that Lizzie and himself are as close as it would appear. Red will admit, getting Gina to take the fall and blame everything on him was a stroke of genius. Red had, in a very short amount of time, forced himself into Lizzie's life and had made himself trustworthy in her eyes. Then when Gina made Red look like a liar, of course Lizzie was going to pick her husband's side over that of a criminal.

He and Lizzie have moved past that though. The whole deal with Anslo Garrick helped move things along no doubt. The moment that repaired their relationship completely was when he gave himself over to Garrick in exchange for her life. Not that that was the reason he did it but it did help Red thought. It fixed everything.

But would Lizzie pick and trust him over Tom now? Red couldn't say but he was certain they would soon find out. And he hoped like hell, for the sake of her life Lizzie picked and trusted him.

As Red sat in the chair, never taking his eyes off Lizzie, he thought about the events of the day. Harold Cooper. Today had almost been it for him and Red couldn't have that. Sooner or later he was going to need Cooper's help. Harold may be a lot of things but he was not stupid. Cooper was very good at his job. A highly decorated solider who was well liked, well respected and trusted by a lot of important people in Washington D.C. People that could get things done. Cooper didn't get to be where he is now just by the luck of the draw. Red knew he was going to need his help and he hoped Harold remembered what he did for him.

Red knew he was going to need a lot of people's help if he was going to win this war. Over the years, Red knew he had gathered up quite the army for himself but over the past few months he had added several more powerful players. Harold, Meera and her CIA connections, Aram with his very impressive computer skills and even Donald. While Donald Ressler wasn't a major player in the D.C. hierarchy he was good. Smart, calm under pressure, tough as hell.

Red knew he had gathered the FBI team's allegiance in some very un gentlemanly like ways. Fear and threats mostly but he was willing to do whatever he had to do in order to win.

However, after it was all said and done, Red knew who was the most important player in the game and she was sound asleep in the bed in front of him. She and she alone would win him this war, he was sure of it. She would be the one to finally help him achieve his revenge for those responsible for taking his life away all those years ago.

Special Agent Elizabeth Keen. His Lizzie. His Ace in the Hole.

The End.

A/N: Review


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